Nice Group is the leading manufacturer of washing and oral care products in China. Established in 1968, the company commands a significant share of the market for washing powders and soap products. The Nice Group has two main brands, Nice® and Diao, of which Diao has been recognised as a ‘China Top Brand’ for the last two years. Unlike the US market, for example, powders currently dominate the Chinese laundry detergent market, with liquid detergents only accounting for a minor share.

Novozymes has an established working relationship with Nice Group; for several years now, Novozymes has worked with Nice Group on formula optimisation for the different washing conditions found across China. As Shannon Zhao, Novozymes’ Customer Solutions manager for the detergent industry, Asia Pacific, explains: “Washing powder performance can vary widely between the many regions of China. This is due to variables such as water hardness and temperature of the water used for washing.”

Water hardness is a measure of the con-centration of minerals, such as calcium and magnesium carbonates, which are naturally present in water. “Water hardness in China can range between 80 ppm - parts per million - to 440 ppm,” says Shannon Zhao. This very hard water interferes with the effectiveness of washing products.

“Water temperature is another factor which can vary extensively; in some regions it can be as low as 5°C, while water temperatures of 30°C can be found elsewhere,” adds Shannon Zhao. Consumers’ washing habits can also vary widely across the country: “In the cities, 80-90% of households use washing machines for their laundry, while this figure drops to around 30% in more rural areas. People in these regions rely on hand-washing to clean their clothes, either using tap water or water from a stream or river.”

Market testing
In order that Nice Group could better understand the needs of its consumers, Novozymes took the unusual step of carrying out a use-and-attitude study in north and south China in December 2004. This was followed by a series of consumer tests in March 2005, in which the performance of Diao Super was evaluated in cold-water washing conditions, both with and without added Novozymes enzymes. A noticeable improvement in washing performance was reported by consumers when enzymes were added to the formulation.

Shannon Zhao explains: “These consumer tests are a good indicator of the market as they reflect real consumer opinions and experiences.”

Diao Ultra
Novozymes‘ Customer Solutions team has worked very closely with Nice Group R&D to develop new formulations which demonstrate improved washing performance with the addition of enzyme. Consequently, in December 2005, following the market testing studies carried out by Novozymes, Nice Group decided to add enzymes to the new formulation of Diao Super.

This new formulation was launched in China in April 2006 as Diao Ultra. As Shannon Zhao explains: “Diao Ultra is an improved version of Diao Super; the new formulation costs the same as Diao Super, but benefits from addition of Novozymes’ enzyme.” The added enzyme is a robust protease that removes a wide variety of protein-based stains. Tests comparing the performance of Diao Super and Diao Ultra show the improvement seen with the addition of Novozymes’ enzyme (see figure below).

The future for Novozymes
The detergent market in China is rapidly evolving, and Shannon Zhao feels that Novozymes could be well placed to benefit as customer familiarity with enzymes increases: “During the last four years enzyme penetration has increased dram­atically to more than half of all detergent products.” The misconception of enzymes as expensive, supplementary ingredients is being challenged.

“Consumer tests are a good indicator of the market as they reflect real consumer opinions and experiences,” says Shannon Zhao.

“A key consideration for laundry detergent manufacturers is the cost/performance ratio,” Shannon Zhao explains. “This is especially important for manufacturers of low-tier products; manufacturers of medium- and high-tier products are also concerned with the unique selling points of their products as compared to their competitors.” Addition of Novozymes’ enzymes can substantially improve performance, without necessarily leading to an increase in production costs.

Environmental concerns are also shaping the future of the detergent market. Recent changes in government policy have led to a drive to remove phosphates from washing powders. As a result, Diao Ultra is available in both phosphate and phosphate-free formulations.

Future collaboration with Nice Group
Following the success of the previous market studies, Novozymes has been carrying out another consumer survey in China. “The results of this survey will reveal what consumers think about the performance of different detergent brands, as well as providing more information about general washing habits,” says Shannon Zhao. “In addition, Novozymes is collaborating with Nice Group in the formulation of future products. Nice Group is looking to expand its product base and offer more varied products to the consumer, and Novozymes should be an integral part of these developments.”

Weilin Teng, R&D manager for Nice Group, also sees a bright future for collaboration between Novozymes and Nice Group:

“Enzymes, like other high-performance ingredients, will play a more important role in future detergent products; therefore, cooperation with companies such as Novozymes will be one of our strategies for development.” Weilin Teng further comments: “Working together with Novozymes has certainly expanded our technology portfolio, which is of vital importance in today‘s highly competitive detergent market. Cooperation with Novozymes has been very helpful during the improvement of Diao Super; Novozymes provided us not only with technical support during enzyme testing, but also with creative suggestions which we used to eventually finalise our formula and process.“

Performance Comparison between Diao® Super and Diao Ultra

In tests, Diao Ultra demonstrates improved performance over Diao Super in removal of protein stains, such as egg and a mixture of blood, milk and ink (EMPA 117).